William whakton



tait@ tant gatwt @ffice Letters Patent No. 78,500, dated June 2, 1868.

'IMPROVED RAILWAY-SWITCH.

c Srlgrhrlr maar iii im tlgrst tttrrs ntmt-:mh mating artt at tip: samt.

T o ALL wnoM 1r MAY ooNcERN';

Be it known that I, WILLIAM WHARTON, Jr., of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, have invented anvImprovcment in Operating Railroad-Switches; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the same. l

My invention consists of switch-rails arranged to move laterally from a fixed po'rnt, in combination with a shaft having two or more graduated cranks, or their equivalents, for serving the twofold purpose of operating nndilate'rally stoadying at ditferent'points the said switch-rails, substantially as set forth hereafter.

In order to enable others skilled in the art to make and apply my invention, Iwill now proceed to describe its construction and operation, referencev being had to the accompanying drawing, which forms a part of this specification, and in ywhich-- Figures l and 2 areplan views of a. railroad-switch with my improvements.

A and Af represent the permanent rails of a main track, and B and B those ofa turn-out.

D and D are the switch-rails, which may either form continuations of the rails E and E', or may be separato rails jointed to the track. 'In the present instance these switch-rails are shown as continuations of the 'permanent rails and E', but are free to move laterally from the point 9:, where they are held to the track, so that in moving the switch-rails dependence is placed upon their lateral elasticity.

In operatingthese switch-rails, the force required to move them hasbcen heretofore applied at one point only, that is near theirouter ends, 'say at the point y, so that from this point to the point fr, where they arc secured to the track, the switch-rails are at liberty to yield to the lateral strains to which they may be sub! jected by passing engines and cars, and thesestrains are in many cases very severe.

In order to obviate this evil, the force for moving the switch-rails is in my improvement 'applied thereto at two or more points, through the medium of cranks, or equivalent devices, which serve the purpose of steadying the rails laterally afterthey have been moved to their proper position.

i In the present instance, and as shown in the drawing, the switch-rails are connected together at four points by rods a a a" lt each rod being continuedoutwards to one of the cranks of a shaft, G, which is arranged to turn in sui-table bearings secured to a foundation at a short distance from the track, and which is provided at one end with an operating-lever, I).

In place ofmaking each rod, a a', Sie., in one continuous piece from the crank to the rails, and across the saine, ordinary connecting-rods, embracing the cranks at one end, and `jointed to the rails or their cross-hars at the other, may be used, in a manner too well understood by those familiar with the construction and operation of switches to need description.

It w-ili he seen that the cranks of the shaft G are graduated in accordance with the extent of movement which cach crank has to impart to that portion of the switch-rails to which it is connected. Thus, of the four cranks shown in the drawing, that connected with the switch-rails nearest the outer ends ofthe same must have the greatest throw, and that for imparting a movementA to' the rails farthest from their outer ends, thc least throw, the intermediate cranks having proportionate graduations.

It will be evident to those familiar with the construction and operation of switches, that cams, eccentrics, Sie., may, by graduating their movements, be used in place ofthe shaft with graduated cranks for operating the switch-rails fr'om a number o f points simultaneously. I prefer the cranks, however, partly on account of their simplicity, but more especially because they can be arranged t o assume a horizontal position, both when the switch-rails coincide with those of the main track, and when they coincide with those of the turn-out, as shown in the drawing, this being the best position for the cranks to assume for resisting the lateral strain imparted to the rails.

I claim as my invention, and desire to secure by Letters Patent-- Switclrrails, arranged to move laterally from a fixed point, in combination with a shaft having two or more graduated cranks, or their equivalents, for serving the twofold purpose of operatingand laterally steadying at different points the said switch-rails, substantially as set forth.

In ltestimony whereof, I have sign'ed my name to this specification in the presence of two subscribing witnesses.

WM. WHARTON, JR.

Witnesses: f JOHN WHITE,

HARRY SMITH. 

